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to 1993EVANGELISM ENTERS JAPAN(ONE STEP BEHIND MODERNIZAT10N)1887‐ 1902
UNITED SYNOD SOUTH
A loose federation of area synods, made up of evangelical Lutheran churches of German immigrants, living along the mid-Atlantic seaboard, met in 1820 to form the General Synod. However,with the outbreak of the Civil War in 1861 America was split in to two, which in turn caused adivision within the church. The southern half of General Synod broke away in 1863 forming theGeneral Synod South. Minutes of the 1884 General Synod South convention indicate a strongemphasis on evangelism both at home and abroad. After securing suggestions from the General

Synod North, a decision was made to support a missionary named Swartz who was working inIndia.

i=ふ,F

iFirst Generation Missionaries and their Families

The Holston and Tennessee synods were added to the General Synod South in 1886, forming theUnited Synod South. The new mission board was given the task of continuing the work ofevangelism at home and abroad. Overseas evangelism continued to center on the support of

Swartz in India. This came to a sudden end in January 1887, when Swartz returned from Indiaand questions were raised on the mission field concerning his faith and theology. As a result, inAugust, Swartz resigned in frustration. During this time the mission board carefully analyzed theworld scene. The outcome of this examination was the presentation of a plan to the church
convention in November to "open mission work in Japan" and "to appoint a permanent secretary

to the board." These decisions indicate the board's willingness to launch out in an entirely new
direction of mission.

-1-

FIRST LUTHERAN]IISS10NARY TO JAPANHowever, the mission board ran into many difficulties in selecting a missionary. One candidate
had health problems. Another candidate had to decline at the last moment because of family
problems. At last, in November 1891 , the board reached the final step in sigrring a contract with

J.A.B. Scherer of the Southwest Virginia Synod. Also mentioned in the records of this meetingis an applicant by the name of R.B. Peery, who was studying at Gettysburg Seminary. From thenon events moved quickly. Young Scherer, who was serving a church as a licentiate of the South

Carolina Synod, passed his ministerial examination even though he had not completed histheological education. He was ordained, and set sail from San Francisco in February 1892. Allof this took place in the short span of three months.

Dr. J. A. B. Scherer

Dr. R. B. PeeryoJAPAN OF THAT PERIODThe year 1892 was the 25th year of the Meiji era. Already a quarter of a century had passed since

the Meiji Restoration. Modernization was nearly completed in government, education, industry
and the military. The Imperial Constitution was established in 1889 (Meiji 22) and the Imperial

Script for Education was established in 1890 (Meiji 23). These were said to be finishing touches
to the process of modernizing Japan, and at the same time, they indicate the uniqueness of thatprocess. The constitutional monarchy system, on which the Emperor system was established,clearly indicated both from within and without an inclination toward totalitarianism. Surely thiswas one of the reasons the United Synod South made the decision to send missionaries to Japan.
As symbolized by the cliquish society that gathered at the "Rokumeikan" daily, movement awayfrom the principles of western enlightenment had already begun in the second decade of Meiji.
Christianity in modern Japan had also covered a quarter of a century. Even though major
denominations had entered Japan in an ecumenical spirit on the wave of western enlightenment,
they had soon established their own bases. In many churches, leadership had already been handed

over from veteran missionaries to national pastors.

First Finnish Missionaries - Shimosuwa

ARRIVAL IN TOKY0Scherer arrived in Tokyo, February 1892, at a time when freedom of choice concerning residenceor travel was not yet allowed in Japan. As a foreigner he lived briefly in the restricted area forforeigners in Tsukiji, where he studied the Japanese language. Surely he spent some of his time
examining the overall situation in Japan and looking for possible places to begin mission work.

In November of that same year Peery, who had finished his studies at Gettysburg Seminary andhad been sent out from the same Virginia Synod, joined Scherer. These two young men were 23
years old and were paid an annual salary of $750 (not unreasonably low when compared to theboard secretary's salary of $1,200).
DSAGA THE FIRST MISS10N AREA
We have no definite proof as to whether or not other established churches in Japan gave advice
or directions to new missions concerning choice of areas in which to begin work. But if we lookat the history of the Southern Presbyterian Church, which arrived at about the same time as the
Lutheran church, we can see that a consultation of Presbyterians indicated three possible
locations -in Sendai, Nagoya, and Kochi- for starting evangelism, and that Nagoya and Kochi
were eventually chosen. The Lutheran church did not have related missions, and we can only
wonder who or what kind of advice Scherer and Peery received.

The policy of the first mission board was very clear. It was to preach the gospel and build
churches in areas where Christianity had not yet advanced. However, there were government
rules regulating where foreigners could live, and people were not allow to travel freely. Thus, it

is not surprising that Scherer's final decision was made with the help of an outside source.
Scherer learned that a friend of an earlier unsuccessful mission candidate, a certain Dr. Bradbury,

who was a teacher of English in the Saga Middle School, suddenly had to return to the states.

Taking advantage of this opportunity, it is not surprising that Scherer made his decision to go

to Saga. With the construction of iron furnaces and a railroad, Saga was surely not all that far
behind the times. By inheriting the position as a teacher of English in the middle school, Scherer

was able to immediately put down roots in Saga. Today when one stands on the spot near theremains of the Saga castle where Scherer lived briefly, one can not help wondering what thisunmarried 23 year old youth thought about upon his arrival to this area.

-4-

Ｌ ﹁ 引田＝ １ ■ ●Ｌ●●月 日
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Saga Lutheran Church- 1900

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Mrs. and Rev. Ryohei Yamauchi

FIRST WORSHIP SERVICE EASTER 1893
Peery eventually joined Scherer in Saga, along with their teacher of Japanese language, Ryohei
Yamauchi and his wife Mikie. After great difficulty they were able to rent a house and the first

Lutheran worship service was held on Easter, April 2, 1893 (Meiji 26). We are told that theaddress was 78 Meijibashi-dori, but we can only guess at the location as we have no way of

pinpointing it exactly. In spite of opposition and persecution in Saga, the mission front graduallywidened as preaching places were opened in neighboring areas. Naomaru Suzuki joined in theseevangelistic efforts, making up a team composed of two American missionaries and threenational evangelists. The Small Catechism, which is necessary for baptismal preparation, wastranslated by 1895. One thing followed another, as theological education training was opened in
1896, and a worship liturgy was translated in 1897 with the help of a deacon of the local Anglican

congregation. Unfortunately, Scherer had to return to America that year because of illness.

-5-

OTHER LUTHERAN IIISS10N GROUPSIn 1898, J.M.T. Winther of Denmark stopped over in Japan on his way to China from America.
Joining C.L. Brown who arrived from Virginia at about the same time, he constructed a church
on land purchased in Hanabusa-koji.The "Japan Evangelical Lutheran Church" was officiallyorganized that same year. This was a prudent first step by the mission board in response to therequest of missionaries on the local field. The second step occurred when the mission front
expanded to Kumamoto (N. Yamauchi) and Kurume (J.M.T. Winther.) The third step was theordination of Ryohei Yamauchi, and Naomaru who had been adopted by Ryohei. Kumamoto andKurume soon became the center of the Lutheran church. Peery resignedas a missionary andreturned to America in 1903. Winther gave his entire life to working in Japan. Brown, after putting

a great deal of effort into establishing Kyushu Gakuin, became secretary of the foreign mission

board.C.K. Lippard, who was added in 1900, played an important role in leadership of the
Lutheran church. In 1905 and 1907 A.J. Stirewalt and L.S.G. Miller joined our church, providing
dedicated service over many years. The growth of the Lutheran church was in large part due tothis second wave of missionaries. Also in 1900, the Rev. A.R. Wellroos family and Esteri
Kurvinen arrived by ship from the Lutheran Evangelical Association of Finland (LEAF) to begin

work in Nagasaki. They also cooperated in the work at Saga, but unfortunately the Wellroos
family had to return home because of family illness. This left only the young sixteen year Miss
Kurvinen to carry on cooperation in Saga. Later, with the arrival of missionaries from Finland,
LEAF moved their mission to Shinshu (in the northern Japan Alps), where new evangelism wasstarted.

One of the events we must take notice of is the opening of the Saga Kindergarten in October
1902. Not only was it just the tenth Christian kindergarten to be opened in Japan, it carried great

weight in influencing the mission policy of adding educational and later social welfare institutions, to accompany evangelistic outreach and church formation.

Saga Kindergarten-6-

EXPANDING FROM KYUSHU TO ALL OF JAPAN

1902‐

1920

PO恥アER OF TIIE lⅣ OM:EN'SI肛 OVEMiENT
From the start of overseas missions by major American denominations in 1812, it was the womenof the church who supported the work with their offerings, Following the Civil War, women allover the country moved forward in forming a variety ol organizations to meet particular needsof society. These efforts reached a national level in the formation of the Lutheran "Women's
Missionary Society, " which resulted in the sending of financial offerings and women missionaries

to overseas mission fields.

Lutheran Church Women

It was only natural that the United Synod South, which had gotten off to a late start in foreign
missions, would gradually put into practice what it learned from others. In 1881 women's
missionary societies from five congregations of the Southwest Virginia Synod came together toform the synod's "Women's Missionary Society" for the specific purpose of supporting Mission-ary Swartz in India. Later, when mission work began in Japan, this society fully supported
Missionary Brown. After the formation of women's mission societies in South Carolina and in
North Carolina, these three organizations came together in 1906 as the "Women's Missionary
Conference of the United Synod South." The one cent/one dollar offerings of these women,
accompanied by their heartfelt prayers, organized a great ground-swell for overseas missions. As

mergers took place on the American scene, this missionary movement spread through out thecountry, becomipg one large organization. The omission of the word "missionary" in the 1956
organizational name change to the "Lutheran Church Women" was symbolic in that direct
involvement of women in foreign missions through their own organization came to an end.

-7 -

EDUCAT10N AND SOCIALヽ VELFARE

It can be said that the Japan Evangelical Lutheran Church, in both its infant days and in its
growing period, was heavily supported by these women's missionary organizations. Along withevangelism and congregational formation, the push of the "Women's Missionary Conference"brought Saga kindergarten into being, and this was the first step on the road to the establishmentof other Lutheran educational and social welfare institutions. Without a doubt, these women were
the real body of support behind the building of our educational and welfare facilities and their
management. They also sent and supported women missionaries through their own organization.

It can be said that the broadening of the church's basic policy of evangelism was due to theirpower.

Kyushu Gakuin - First Building

ⅥrIDENING

THE CHURCH BASE AND VIS10N

The period of about twenty years from 1902 until 1920 was a time when the Japan Evangelical
Lutheran Church, which had added various institutional facilities to its evangelism and congregation formation activity, built up its base in a variety of different ways. This period is marked as
the formative period of our church.
From the viewpoint of the earlier church goals of evangelism and church formation, the wideningof the front line to Hakata, Ogi, Tokyo, Hita, Moji, Shimonoseki, Nagoya, Amagi, Osaka, Omuta,

Nogata, Kobe is worth noticing. The Finnish branch too, which had moved from Kyushu to theShinshu area, rapidly opened churches in Shimo-suwa, Ikebukuro, Okaya, Kami-suwa, Iida,and
Komagane. We can see that both of these missions, which had begun working together in Kyushu,

had pushed outward with their vision until they had reached as far as Tokyo.

-8-

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Record of First Baptism

BICAMERAL SYSTEM AND SHADAN (LEGAL HOLDING BODY)
Concerning church structure and cooperation between the Japanese church and the mission
board, we should note that the joint ministerium which began in 1900 officially became the annual
convention as of 1915. The missionary association, which had been formed in 1910, and theannual convention worked together through a bicameral form of government. In 1912 a nationalpresident and secretary were elected. As early as 1903, a ten year plan for self-support was
adopted. A program of aid to further the education of young women was inaugurated in 1907.
The first rules of the church, "regulations and by-laws," were decided in 1903, giving us a good

picture of that period. In turn, these by-laws became the first church constitution (1919) , which
was based on the bicameral system. The Ruteru-Kyoho in 1900 which became the Ruteru-Shinpo

in 1902 and developed into the Ruteru in 1911, also reveals the expansion of the church. The
monthly church newsletter from Saga, which gives personal news concerning churches andmembers spread out across Japan, also presents a warm and personal picture of the church atthat time. The missionary shadan was established in 1909 for the purpose of registering church
property that had previously been listed in the names of individual church members. In 1910, aplan for financial independence was inaugurated. All of this indicates that the church was
growing in this period.

‑9‑

TRAINING OF MINISTERIAL CANDIDATESThe training of pastors began in Saga in 1903. A full program of theological education was
inaugurated in Kumamoto in 1909 under the name of the Lutheran Theological Seminary. It issaid that the seminary began in the newly constructed A.J. Stirewalt residence. There is a stone
inscribed with this f.act at the base of a tree near the entry of an apartment building which ispresently built on that site. It would be good for those visiting Kumamoto to stop at this site andto dwell a few minutes thinking about those pioneers. Finishing two years of preparatory courses

and three years of theological courses for ministerial preparation, the first seminary class
graduated in June 1915. This led to the second ordination of five persons in 1917: Tsunenari
Wasa, Satoaki Matsumoto, Inoko Miura, Masato Kameyama, and Denki Honda.

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KYUSHU GAKUIN, JI AI EN
In 1911, two years after the founding of the seminary, Kyushu Gakuin was established largely
through the efforts of C.L. Brown, and a fruitful mission policy of expanding institutional
facilities. The seminary became the theological department of Kyushu Gakuin and in 1914 wasrecognized as a professional school under the professional school law. In the same year Kyushu
Gakuin was recognized as a legal body. Some of the issues that still face the church today
concerning legal bodies date to this time. The Finnish church also held seminary training in Iidain 1913 for a brief period of time.

Judo and Kendo Club - KYushu Gakuin

The policy of establishing church institutions continued to expand in scope. From church related
kindergartens, to the establishment of large independent schools such as Kyushu Gakuin, thisdevelopment was mainly seen in the educational field. Later, this trend broadened to include
social work institutions. The actual decision to open social welfare work was made in 1919, andJi Ai En was built in 1920 in Kumamoto.

-11 -RETROSPECT AND EVALUAT10N
The widening of educational and social ministry was greatly influenced by the dedicated effortsof the "Women's Missionary Conference of the United Synod South." Perhaps it could even be
said that it was entirely due to their efforts. However, the consolidation of materials covering"the participation and dedication of women in mission in Japan" has lagged behind times, and in
the Sixty Years of JELC History commemorative booklet, the contribution of women in mission

is not even touched upon. Challenging research topics concerning women in mission that still
await us today, even if the resource materials are poor, include such topics as the women's
missionary society's support of C.L. Brown in the early days, contributions to the building of
Kyushu Gakuin, the sending of initial female missionaries Martha Akard and Mary Lou Bowers

in 1914, followed by the two Powlas sisters Maude and Annie, the establishment of Ji Ai En, andthe 1926 founding of Kyushu Jogakuin. Each one of these topics indicates the power of thewomen's movement at that particular time. We must also never forget the earnest prayer andzeal that stood behind this dedicated women's movement. In line with the Mission Board's policyof widening of evangelism outward from Saga, and in awareness of the financial situation, we
cannot deny that it was the strong backing of the Women's Missionary Conference that made thisgrowth possible. It can even be shown that they were able to influence the board and at times had

the power to control it.

t*

Jiaien Nursing Home

-12

Kurume Church - 1917

DECISION MAKING PROCESS, RESPONSIBILITY
On the other hand, there were surely merits and demerits in the multi-faceted approach between"policy" and "reality" concerning evangelism in Japan. The backside of aggressive dedication
reveals a number of problems. For example, within the bicameral system -made up of the annual
church convention and the missionary association- the final right of decision always rested withthe missionary association. The annual convention on the other hand, which was made ofJapanese church members, was not even allowed to express its opinion in areas such as education

or social welfare, Hidden within this problem, was the complicated issue of mission board
initiative for evangelism in Japan, as over against the work and activities in which women
missionaries were directly involved. But even if these issues belonged to the missionary association, the Japanese members surely did not keep silent at times. Already within the American
church, the decisions of the Women's Missionary Conference swayed the decisions of the Board
concerning personnel and work, and this made for a double structure of power. For missionaries
on the field it was a question of whom they were being supported by, and for example, to which

supporting group they were responsible for sending reports. If we were to checkout where themissionaries of that period sent their work reports and then study the contents of those reports,

we could affirm some of these hypothesises. In truth, we who are of the generation that began
our ministries following the war, heard and saw some of this disharmony as eyewitnesses. We
should notice however that some of these matters were taken care of at about the same time thatthe "Women's Missionary Conference" came to an end within the Lutheran churches in America.

This came about naturally as the women of American, particularly church women, turned theirvision to a variety of new and different concerns at the end of World War II .
1'

L00KING INWARDLY
In 1920, the JELC embraced at least 15 local congregations. Evangelism and church growth were
amalgamated further and, along with the inauguration of educational and social welfare facil-

ities, efforts were centered on church stabilization and management. At this time, when both
Japan and the world were being influenced by the Japan/Russia war, and later by World War I,

it seems that the Japan Evangelical Lutheran Church paid little attention to the great number ofissues facing society. The unanswered internal problems facing the church at that period,
continued to affect the direction and policy of the church in later years. Small in size and grouped

tightly together, "was the Japan Evangelical Lutheran Church really ready and able to carry out
its task earnestly in the areas of church, education and social ministries?" These questions werecarried over into the next period, the period of World War II.

Annual Church Meeting - 1919

-74-

A DESPERATE STRUGGLE WITHIN THE FLOW OF HISTORY

1921‐

1941

EARLY JELC RECORDS AND STATISTICS
Historical materials concerning the Japan Evangelical Lutheran Church are collected in the
Ruteru. Almost all of the issues since the time of the Ruteru Kyoho (published from 1900) down

to the Ruteru of today are preserved, giving us a valuable historical record of nearly one hundredyears. Minutes from the the first JELC General Convention held in 1920, called according to theconstitution and by-laws drawn up in 1919 (Taisho 8), are available. The minutes of all otherchurch conventions too are preserved in their entirety. At the same time, materials on theAmerican side are available. These include church publications, as well as the English minutes ofchurch conventions. These records are especially interesting because they include personal
reports written by individual missionaries. And, because the church convention minutes include
the annual reports of the mission board, one can grasp a total view of the situation each year. By

putting these materials together, we are able to form a fairly accurate historical picture.
From the 1921 (Taisho 10) church convention, statistical records were consolidated and added as
an appendix to the convention minutes. Incidentally, the records of lg2l indicate that there were
23 congregations consisting of 1,390 members, and that prior to merger with the Finnish church

in 1940 (Showa 15) there were 46 congregations with 5,259 members, and that after the merger
the church consisted of 58 congregations and 7 ,158 members. It is interesting to note that somecongregations did not report their statistics, leaving their records blank. Hence, the figures given

are not totally accurate. AII of which indicates that little has changed over the years. Thesechurch conventions minutes and statistical records help us to grasp the development of church

administration. Strong central church administration was a logical development of the first
constitution and its by-laws (1919), and even accelerated by it.

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Ruteru Kyoho 1900

STRENGTHENING INWARDLY, UNAWARE OUTWARDLY

If history had progressed peacefully, these twenty years would surely have been years in which
our church strengthened itself internatly. When we look in detail at the inner workings of thechurch, we can see that things were moving in that direction. For example, until the church was
abruptly hit by the events of the time, the church hardly showed awareness of the direction inwhich history outside the church was moving. In fact, in order to fortify the structure of thechurch, a decision was made in 1922 to "suspend pioneer evangelism for five years," presumably

to strengthen local congregations. The issue of self-reliance was continually raised as seen in theinauguration of plans calling for "self-support of 50% of the pastor's salary" and in the call of themissionary association for "full self-support." In 1929 the Kurume congregation became the first

JELC church to become fully self-supporting. In all honesty, church growth was minimal during
the first ten years of this period with the number of congregations barely reaching the twenties.

In the latter ten years, however, congregations increased to nearly double that number.

￨￨￨̲

̲
‐

Lutheran Theological Seminary, Saginomiya, Tokyo
Ground Breaking- 1934

GREAT KANTO EARTHQUAKE, START OF TOKYO WELFARE INSTITUTIONSNevertheless, during this twenty year period, development was not compietely inconspicuous. For

example, during this period, established congregations were being strengthened, and a new
liturgical service was officially adopted with such thoroughness that all other previously used
forms were withdrawn from use. In 1925 (Taisho 14), the seminary was moved to Saginomiya inTokyo and became "Japan Lutheran Theological Seminary." The following year, after many
years of planning, Kyushu Jogakuin was opened. Thus we see the investment of people andfinancial resources in the field of education. There were also lay movement activities.

-16-

Two consultations for lay members were held at Kyoto and Kurume in 1925 (Taisho 14),centering on the theme of self-reliance. In 1928 (Showa 3), a women's convention was held andthe federation of JELC women was organized. As part of this trend, a training course for lay
people was opened at the seminary in 1930. There was also the response of the church to theunexpected disaster of the Great Earthquake of. L923. Social welfare activities were initiatedimmediately for the relief to fire-storm victims. These were followed by the establishment ofTokyo Home for the Aged and Bethany Home. The inner strengthening of the church can also
be seen in the decision made to publish a translation of the Lutheran confessions, portions ofwhich were completed by 1935 (Showa 10).

Tokyo Nursing Home

UNICAMERAL SYSTEM, SECOND CONSTITUTION
The adoption of the second constitution and by-laws set the stage for the change to a unicameral
system of organization. Two years of negotiations followed, from the time of the church's first
request to the mission board, before this new system was established in 1930 (Showa 5). This

constitution (and by-laws) has basically continued until the present day as the norm for ourchurch. At that time there were 27 congregations with 3,362 members. Compared to our present

number of approximately 140 congregations and 20,000 members. We realize the need forreevaluation of our constitution as the JELC faces its second century of mission and evangelization.

-t7 -EVENTS AND TENDENCIES OUTSIDE OF THE CHURCH
While the church was putting effort into building itself internally, it of course was not totallyunaware of the changes in the world around it. We have mentioned the immediate response of thechurch to the needs raised by Kanto earthquake. In 1924 (Taisho 13), the year following thisearthquake, the "Anti-emigrant Act" was adopted in the USA. A declarative statement was madethat "from the point of view of the churches related to America this law impedes evangelistic
mission." Thus the rising sense of alarm on the world scene at the beginning of the Showa period,
and the church's efforts toward self-reliance, were not unrelated. In 1934 the church adopted aresolution calling for the acceleration of self-support, and in the following year, a ten-year planfor self-reliance, as well as a coalition for self-management, were initiated, all of which indicate
the increased tempo of the times. But, as to awareness of, or any warning and criticism of therapid militarizatiorr of the country at the beginning of the Showa period, it seems to have been
a topic off limits. Therefore when the church was finally swept up by the wave of the times, its
response was overly optimistic. Thus, in the end the church was caught off-guard as it wasengulfed in the sudden panic of those times. In those unexpected events, was it best to endure

patiently, waiting for storm to pass? That kind of passive attitude was not allowed, of course, as
the church was forced to respond to the demands for obedience and cooperation enforced on it
by the state government. The period from 1937 (Showa 12) when Manchuria was invaded until thestart of World War II in 1941, was a period of great upheaval.

Scene of Japanese Invasion into China

-18-

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Ruins in Nagasaki after World War II

LAW TO CONTROL RELIGIOUS ORGANIZATIONS
The "Law for the Control of Religious organizations" was submitted to the Diet repeatedly,
failing each time, but was passed into law in 1939 (Showa 14). We must recognize that there werea number of positions and opinions within the various Christian churches concerning this issue.

Many were quite optimistic in stating that this turn of events was positive for Christianity anda victory, "believing that this in no way restrains rightful activities." From the beginning of the

Meiji constitution (1889, Meiji 22), and in following years when Shintoism, Buddhism, andChristianity had been listed as the "Three Religions" (1912, Meiji 45), the Christian church hadrejoiced in being officially recognized by Japanese society. Many Christians naively welcomed
this new law as an extension of that policy. In 1940 (Showa 15) the calendar was renamed as the"2600th Year of the Imperial Reign." With the call for "All Citizens to Fully Support TheirCountry," many religious groups were happy to be asked for their participation and some even
evaluated the new religion organization 1aw as a "good opportunity for the church." But for all

religious organizations, the political policy of the government of that period led repeatedly into
deeper and deeper darkness. The "regulation" of religious activities quickly raised its ugly headin its true form as "coercion" of religion. For example, under the new law - "Control of Religious
Organizations" - the government did not recognize religious organizations in their existing forms.
Recognition was given only to those religious organizations with more than 50 congregations andmore than 5,000 members. Glance back at the statistics of our church mentioned earlier for those
years. Plans were made to merge with the Finnish Lutheran church and the process went as far
as the final step before the official recognition of merger.

-19-

THE DARKNESS OF CHURCH UN10N
In the summer of 1940, the government made the decision to "expand into the southeast Asia
through the use of military power." In September they invaded Northern Indochina. In October
the Imperial Rule Assistance Association was established and all government policies werealigned with this military strategy. With the enactment of the "Law and Regulation of Religious
Bodies in Japan," the policy of the Ministry of Education changed drastically. The move wasmade to recognize only one Catholic organization and one Protestant organization. The federa-tion of Christian churches took the lead in working toward a swift union of protestant churches.
On October LTth at the "All Japan Christian Gathering" on the occasion of the "Celebration of
the 2600th Year of the Imperial Reign," the statement that should have been read, "we hope forcomplete cooperation of all Christian believers in one large body," was instead read as, "we desire

the goal of one united church." Sixty-three representatives from the various churches gathered
there made up the new ruling council. This included two representatives from the Lutheranchurch. The two Lutheran representatives strongly emphasized that church union must first be
reached through agreement in creed, and that "blocs" should be allowed to exist from the
beginning. Yet they seemed to have had very little influence. The joint council moved toward
adopting a common creed, but even the shortest sentences found no agreement. The result wasthat the "bloc" system was adopted "with conditions" for the time being.

Merger with Finnish Mission - 1940

-20

It is true that the union of all Christian churches was one of goals of early Christian organizationsin Japan, and many were still striving for that goal. But union brought about in such an
unexpected and abrupt way was hardly in line with that goal. The truth must be said that process

and result of this whole development was due to the pressure of the militaristic government ofthat time. It also must be said that an overly optimistic attitude on the part of many Christians
helped to bring on this distressing situation.

LUTHERAN CHURCH̀̀DISAPPEARS''With the decision of the May 1, 1941 general convention of the Japan Evangelical Lutheran
Church to "participate in the United Church of Christ in Japan," the Japan Evangelical Lutheran
Church disappeared for a time from history. We must see clearly the reality that our one hundredyears of history has not been a continual history, and then we must learn from that fact. On June
24 and25, 1941, the inaugural convention for the union of all Protestant churches accepted "forthe time being" the concept of blocs as an appendix. With this agreement, the United Church of
Christ in Japan came into being. In reverse, the Japan Evangelical Lutheran Church disappeared,
becoming only "bloc number five" on paper. It was expected that the situation would stay thisway for some time. But the phrase, "for the time being," turned out to be for only one year as
things worsened. It was a difficult and dark period for our church, and a period for which we musttake responsibility.

電気．

Japanese Christians-Nationalistic Movement - 1940

-27-

A NEⅥ rSTART AND RAPID DEVELOPMENT

1941‐

1960

SHARING RESPONSIBILITY FOR HISTORY
Sharing history means sharing responsibility for that history. We are now dealing with a mostimportant period in our history. Here the question of common responsibility means taking
responsibility for joining the United Church of Christ in Japan. And then, it means taking
responsibility for secession from that union. Even more than that, it means we must still wrestlein our day with the issue of our church's responsibility during the World War II.
I have in my hands a brief history of United Church of Christ in Japan which lists its "chronology"

in 34 pages. In my copy the section concerning the union of the Japan Evangelical Lutheran
Church with the United Church in June 1941 until its withdrawal in November 1947 is underlined

in red. That was the period when the Japan Evangelical Lutheran Church did not exist. But
nevertheless as a member of the United Church of Christ in Japan at that time, we must carryour share of responsibility during that period. Two problems stand out in particular and can beclearly identified in the records as mentioned above. They are: 1) the uncritical alignment withgovernmental trends and policies and the optimistic viewpoint taken concerning policies involving the church, and 2) standing upon its creeds, the JELC took a basic stance against church union(merger based on common agreement of creed), but did not carry out this posture consistently

from beginning to end. In the face of those historical facts, the JELC must admit its responsibility

for what happened during this dark period in our history.

Tokyo Church Ruins after Bombing - 1945

WAR TIME C00PERAT10N
Apart from responsibility for participating in church union during World War II , we also mustreflect upon our actions during the period leading up to war and upon our cooperation with thatwar. The "Minutes of the United Church" indicate the following notes: "Christian patriotic
council supporting war," "Visitation of the Ise shrine by church leaders," "Teacher drill camps,""Persecution of the Holiness Groups in the 6th and 9th blocs, (and the attitude of the United
Church to that persecution)," "Proposal for propaganda in war time," "Elimination of blocs,""Christian assembly supporting the Emperor's principles," "Letters sent to Christians in thegreater Asia area from the United Church," "Contributions to military aircraft," "United Churchof Christ in Japan's proclamation of readiness for final battle," "sending of missionaries tosoutheast Asians," etc., all with brief explanations attached. For these actions as well as others,

our church, which was part of the United Church at that time, must carry its responsibility fordoing things which it should not have done, and for not doing those things which it should have
done.

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Missionaries Leave Japan - June 1941

AMiBIGUOUS STANCEThe United Church of Christ in Japan, following World War II, took an ambiguous position
concerning its war-time responsibilities, and has recently begun to think of itself as a victim ofwar. It can be said that the United Church took the easy way out as it began to rebuild itself
immediately after the war by rushing into the "Christian boom." This is where we as Lutheransmust start as we seek to understand our mutual responsibility for that period.
ntSECESS10N FROM THE UNITED CHURCH
Since the "union of the protestant churches" was enforced by pressure of the monolithic policyof bringing all religious bodies under government control and cutting all ties with foreigncountries, when pressure disappeared, the churches were once again able to reestablish themselves in denominations, and set up relationships with churches in foreign countries. Along withthe movement to reestablish the Anglican church and other denominations through withdrawal
from the United Church, the issue of "the establishment of the Lutheranism" and the "reorganiza-tion of the United Church" was discussed as early as 1946. This was the start of the formationof the "Lutheran church," and negotiations with the United Church began within that same year.

First of all we should take notice that the United Church worked toward restructuring itself as
a federation of churches resembling the original structure of "blocs." At the Jamtary 1947
"Reconstituting Convention" of the United Church, the Lutheran church was still groping to finditself within the United Church. Secession from the United Church followed later, at an extraordinary church convention of Lutherans called in November 1947, after it was decided that it was
impossible to reach full agreement with the churches remaining in the union. The "lapan
Evangelical Lutheran Church" was organized once again. This step was made by the Japanese
Lutheran church which was of American background. Unfortunately, within the total process, noreference was made to the need of taking responsibility for all that had previously taken place
during union with other churches during World War II. Opinions were expressed that "confession
was necessary because the church had not been faithful in taking a stand" when it came to theissue of union by common creed, but reference to war-time responsibility can be found nowhere.

This too is where we as Lutherans must start in carrying out our responsibility for past deeds.

Reorganization of Lutherans - 1947

-24-

FINNISH LUTHERAN CⅡ URCH DELAYS DECIS10N
Records indicate that the Japan Lutheran church of Finnish background was not able to make an

immediate decision to act with us, unsure whether to stay within the United Church of Christ inJapan, or to secede from it. Not having a strong conviction as to what course of action to take,it moved slowly until August 1948 when the independent "Evangelical Lutheran Church" wasreestablished through secession from the United Church. These two Lutheran churches werereunited once again in 1953.

Sunday School Children in Nagoya

Within the mutual sharing of history and responsibility, and looking at our actions during WorldWar II from fifty years later, we should be able to see clearly that repentance remains a personal
issue for each one of us. That is, as we concentrate on Jesus Christ and his redemption and believe

upon the one triune God who rules over history (from the eschatological aspect), then we will

walk in the world as a "confessional church" truly "confessing our faith."-25-

THE LUTHERAN CHURCH FOLLOⅥ

たING

THE WARThe period immediately following the war was the so-called "Christian boom." Christianity, alongwith democracy, was seen as being in vogue, stylish . Indeed, Christianity did bring a fresh breathof air into Japan which had been devastated by war. People came seeking a new resting place forthe longings of their hearts. Not only did America give needed support in the political, economi-cal, and social arenas, it supported Christianity as well. In the eyes of the Japanese people
following the war, Christianity was deeply related to America itself.

Rev. Ellis and the Bookmobile in Kumamoto

Immediately following the war, an envoy of four delegates from American churches arrived inJapan in October 1945. In June of 1946 six missionaries arrived inJapan, formingthe "ChristianCommittee for Local and Overseas Cooperation," and began to rebuild churches, provide Bibtes
and hymn books, support pastors, and offer many kinds of aid. The first missionary to come witha civilian passport, not a military one, was L.S.G. Miller of the Lutheran church (August 1946).

Martha Akard and A.J. Stirewalt came soon afterwards. Arthur Knudten was at one time amember of the Committee for Cooperation. The United Lutheran Church in America (ULCA),

which had been "awaiting the decision of our Japanese brothers and sisters" concerning theirrelationship with the United Church of Christ in Japan, now sent former missionaries as well as
new missionaries, cooperated constructively in evangelism, restored war ravaged churches, andopened pioneer evangelism fields. It was a period in time when "it couldn't be helped" that"whatever was done in the name of Christianity" brought people together in great numbers. "Kyushu Gakuin and Kyushu Jogakuin were both reopened. In 1950, theological education was
begun again at the Japan Lutheran Theological Seminary. The third church constitution andby-laws were adopted, and the issue of self-reliance was once again discussed.

WORLD LUTHERAN CHURCHES RUSH IN
One of the things that we should understand about the period immediately following World War

II is that many Lutheran churches from overseas came to Japan at this time to participate forthe first times in Japanese evangelism. Soon after the war ended we notice that the Missouri
Synod was the first new group to arrive (W.J. Danker, September 1948). The Missouri Synod
began independent outreach in metropolitan Tokyo, northern Japan, Niigata, and Hokkaido,

forming the "Japan Lutheran Church." Next to arrive in Japan was the Evangelical Lutheran
Church (ELC). Based on a survey by mission board secretary R. Syrdahl, Olaf Hansen was sentout in 1949. He was followed by many other missionaries serving from Tokyo (Koishikawa,
Hongo, Itabashi) southward to the Tokai region, which became the center of the "Japan Missionof the ELC." Shortly after arriving in Japan, these missionaries established a Bible School in
Shizuoka, initiated Bible education courses for lay persons, and began training lay evangelists.
The Augustana and Suomi Synods joined work in Japan in 1950. These two churches cooperativefrom the beginning within the framework of evangelism of the Japan Evangelical Lutheran
Church in their outreach programs. The former group, under David Vikner's leadership, placed
young missionaries in teams with national pastors and assistants, opening work in Tokyo(Den-enchofu) and the Sanyo region. The latter group evangelized in Tokyo (Omori) and in Kofu.

Also at that time, missionaries from a number of missionary societies in Norway were sent tobegin evangelistic work in the Kansai, Kinki, and West Japan areas. Today these missions makeup the Kinki Evangelical Lutheran Church and the West Japan Evangelical Lutheran Church.

Lutheran Hour Radio Broadcast

T01Ⅳ ARDS MERGER OF THE VAR10US LUTHERAN CIIURCHESThe Lutheran Churches that came after the war did not begin work in a helter-skelter manner.

All of them in some way negotiated with the Japan Evangelical Lutheran Church concerning
mission work, reaching an understanding as to the division of each group's mission field.
Eventually, these Lutheran churches began to publish cooperative evangelism materials (1950).

A loosely organized conference was established, called the "All Lutheran Free Conference." The
Missouri Synod began the Lutheran Hour broadcast in September 1951. This was eventuallybroadcasted nationwide, further increasing the need for concrete cooperation amongst all
Lutheran churches.

Within the framework of these areas of cooperation, "negotiations between the various Lutherangroups concerning merger" occurred off and on over a period of years. Beginning with confirma-tion of doctrinal testimony, church constitution, by-laws, theological education facilities, district
divisions, etc., many difficult peaks were surpassed, reaching down to cooperation on the local
congregational level. But in the end, final agreement was not reached. Due to differences in eachchurch's traditions, customs, and theological background, as well as the concrete division of

districts and established facilities for theological education, the only group to overcome all
barriers was the ELC Mission. As a final step of preparation toward merger with the JELC, theTokai Evangelical Lutheran Church was organized in July 1960.

Aso Bible Camp-28-

FROIMi MERGER TO SELF・ SUPPORT:SELF・ RELIANCE IN MISS10N EVANGELISM 1961¨

1992

STRENGTHENING CHURCH IIERGERThe Tokai Evangelical Lutheran Church and the Japan Evangelical Lutheran Church weremerged at an inaugural convention May 1963. From the beginning, their relationship was unclear

concerning the division of districts. The situation was left to stand with four districts: Eastern,

Tokai, Western, and Kyushu. Pastor Hiroshi Fujii was sent out as an JELC missionary to workin Brazil. This was an important step forward for a church that had worked some seventy years

relying on the support of overseas churches. Following a transitional period of one year, thenewly established Japan Evangelical Lutheran Church proceeded to adjust and strengthen merger

at its first church convention in 1964. The constitution and by-laws for the new church wereapproved, again leaving for the time being certain areas in need of adjustment. It should be notedthat preparations had been made for the merger of all Lutheran churches in Japan, but the earlymerger of the above two churches had surpassed these plans, even though some problem areas
remained such as the fact that our constitution and by-laws were originally drawn-up for a small
church of only 30 congregational units. Questions also remained concerning the need tostrengthen the administrative organization of the church, and concerning the role of the mission-

ary.

●

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Rev. and Mrs. Fujii -First Missionaries to Brazll-29-

OTHER LUTHERAN CHURCHESIN JAPANFor those Lutheran churches that had not joined in the final merger, namely the Kinki Evangeli-

cal Lutheran Church, the West Japan Evangelical Lutheran Church, and the Japan Lutheran
Church (Missouri Synod related), our working relationship did not end with the termination ofmerger discussions. Rather our contacts were intensified through cooperation in such areas asradio evangelism and literature evangelism. The two churches of Norwegian background, which

worked in the western part of Japan, also moved forward in mission as they added Kobe Bible
School and strengthened their seminary. The Japan Lutheran Church on the other hand joined the

JELC in conversation concerning theological education. One of our prayers since restructuring in
1964 was answered when permission was granted for the two churches to jointly establish andmanage a theological college and seminary. This agreement was signed in 1966 and the Japan

Lutheran Theological College/Seminary became a reality in 1969 at a new location and campus

in Mitaka (1969).

Japan Lutheran Theologicat College/Seminary in Mitaka

Realization that merger must be tied to evangelism was seen in the two year commemorative
slogan for merger, "Large Scale Evangelism." The development of an "overall plan for evange-lism" can be seen as going hand in hand with the unfolding of this movement. "Multiple ministry"and "multiple parishes" were discussed for the first time during this period. It can be said thatseveral grass-root level experiments were tried, but they were not based on thorough testing.

With support from overseas churches during this period, JELC evangelism centered on the "AllJapan Level Pioneer Evangelism" (from 1966) , and the "Church Center System" (from 1967).
Concentrating on a flexible plan-30

for personnel placement, division of funds, and the concept of church centers, the results of someof these projects are worth looking at. But unfortunately many of these concepts were not able

to break through church structure because they were not based on concrete national or local
church policies. This whole area still needs to be examined and evaluated. About this time,
Missionary E. Strohm from Germany took up residence in Kamagasaki, Osaka, beginning her
work among day laborers and those with alcohol dependency. Her ministry caused our church toreexamine the quality of its evangelism program.

Diaconia Service in Kamagasaki Osaka

T()WARDS SELF‐ RELIANCE
In the flow of events, "1969" is a year that will be long remembered. Expectations were placedin a new program for nurturing graduates of the Lutheran Theological College/Seminary. Manydifficulties were faced however, in developing a educational program which included internshipduring the final two years. This was due to the world-wide based student and social movementsof that period, which, with added Japanese undulations, widened into struggles not only within theseminary, but within the church at large. Those who asked questions and those who were asked
questions, both continue to carry the burden of these concerns even until today, as we have been

awakened to new issues of life which we share with those who are now co-workers and those whohave chosen other lifestyles. These issues concern our church's responsibility to society, and at

the same time press us to widen our scope of vision. Another problem area remaining for ourchurch is the issue of confession concerning wartime responsibility. We missed a good opportu-

nity at the time of the United Church's "Confession of War Responsibility" (1967) , because wevacillated back and forth until nothing was done.

-31 -ASM:ARA DECLARAT10N
Another topic is the "Asmara Declaration." This was an declaration made by JELC President S.

Utsumi at Asmara, Ethiopia, April 1967 at the JCM (the conference of overseas churches that
supported the JELC, and which was restructured in 1973 under JELC leadership as the LCM).
President Utsumi stated, "The JELC will bring the amount of outside support needed for thegeneral budget close to the zero number by the year 1974. " If we look at issues of the Ruteru from
June of that year, we will see the reaction of the church council and others, and the repercussions

this statement caused. But when we look at the state of the world economy today and theeconomic situation of the overseas supporting churches, we see that this decision was correct,
even if it seemed difficult at that time. It can be said that even without that declaration, theoverseas churches would have soon pressed us to make this change. One person wrote that it was
like "trying to totally overhaul a ship while it was still running at sea." This probably reveals afeeling of responsibility, as well as a feeling of danger, to those persons who were involved intackling this issue.
"The First Comprehensive Plan for Self-reliance" was reached in 7972 . This plan was coherently
established when the first profit producing projects were begun in Ichigaya (1974) , Osaka(7976) , and Koishikawa (1980) . At the same time, preparation was made for self-reliance fromthe individual congregational level, upward to self-reliance on the district level (support done
within each district), although steps taken to reach these concrete goals were not always
perfected. From 1975 and on through the Second Comprehensive Plan, this structure continues

until the present. During this time the staff of our church stoically strove forward at all times.
It must be said that even though we became self-supporting on the first section of our budget,
theological education and radio evangelism still required help from overseas churches. And wecannot overlook the fact that today churches are still being built partly by funds received fromabroad.

New Chuurch Sanctuary under Construction in Hokaido

DISTRICT AND NAT10NAL LEVEL PLANNING
During this time it was realized that the main responsibility of mission outreach is not just the
responsibility of scattered local congregations. Rather, it is also the responsibility of the conferences and the districts. Specific examples can be seen in the JELC's national level plan initiating

the Hokkaido Special District. (The plan and schedule for the Hokkaido Special District wasestablished in 1970, evangelism promotion began in 1978, and it was recognized as a special

district in 1981). Another example is the Tsurugaya project promoted by the Eastern District.
The theme, "Plan for Training the People of God" (1976), which is based on "God's People
Proclaiming the Gospel and Serving the World" is related to this. This trend is further revealedin the pamphlets for the education of lay persons published by the Eastern district, and in the"Living Faith" series of the Kyushu district concerning confirmation.

じ︑ ．
Children Participating in Holy Communion

In 1977 our church, taking up the questions and issues concerning "baptism, confirmation, andholy communion" that were being raised on the world Lutheran scene, wrestled with the issue of
early communion, and then began to move steadily on the road to continuing education for all
believers. The Tokai, Hokkaido, and Eastern districts each made plans to publish materials
concerning faith and life in order to appeal to and share with the church at large. The "practical"
and the "theological" are themes always discussed at each church convention. The question of thesacraments is one which we carry together, and we face other challenging choices as we
experience the process of turning in new directions.
.).t-L00KING TO TOM:ORROヽ V
Ever since the first consultation with overseas churches in 1968, the "role of the missionary" isa topic which has still not been adequately dealt with. The importance of the topic can be seenin that the LCM took up this issue in consultation in 1979 and again in 1983. From a wider
viewpoint, our Lutheran church, which was begun by missionaries and grew under the guidanceand support of overseas churches, now must wrestle with the question of how to continue living

faithfully in the tradition of the Lutheran faith as we become an established church in Japan. The
publication of the JELC hymnal (1976) and the Book of Concord, Japanese Edition (1982), therevision of the liturgy ( "Worship and Baptism" in 1983), etc. are all part of this challenge. As
we enter the next one hundred years of our mission, we are called to take upon ourselves anew
these various issues, and from our own personal experience, be more aware of and involved in the

total picture. As a first step, we want to all become united as one in confessing the "Mission
Centennial Declaration of Faith," (see inside cover of this book). It is necessary that the new
church constitution, which is now in the preparation stage, bring common unity as it grasps boththe essence of the church today and brings into concrete image the church of tomorrow.

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